There are many types of fitness training, including weight training, calisthenics, yoga, Pilates, aerobic dancing such as Zumba®, etc. Regardless of the type of fitness training, two characteristics are essential: (a) proper “form”, i.e., the way in which the exercise is performed; and (b) proper exertion level, i.e., number of repetitions, intensity and/or duration of the workout, etc. Proper form and optimum exertion level maximize the benefit of the exercise, while poor form and sub-optimal exertion level result in an inefficient workout, wasting time and effort. Even more importantly, poor form and/or excessive exertion level can lead to serious injuries which may require medical treatment, loss of work, or permanent disability, in addition to pain and suffering.
Physical therapy (PT) is a health care profession which deals with the treatment of physical impairments and disabilities which may be caused by injury, disease or congenital disorders. It provides improved mobility and functional ability, including greater strength and dexterity. Fitness training is similar, but is intended primarily for nominally healthy individuals. For the purposes of this disclosure, the differences between physical therapy and general fitness training are not significant, and are therefore considered interchangeably.
The ultimate level of a fitness program is personal training, wherein a skilled personal trainer works with a client to implement a customized fitness training program. One of the most important functions of a personal trainer is to pay close attention to the form, as well as the exertion level, of the individual client's workout. However, expert personal trainers can be very expensive, due, in part, to extensive and frequent repetition of a routine.
At the other end of the scale, an alternative option is to perform a workout following generic instructions from a pre-recorded video. Such videos can be purchased on DVD relatively inexpensively. In this case there is no customization and, in particular, there is no inspection for proper form or exertion level, with consequent low efficiency and the risk of injury as mentioned earlier.
A recent development is something referred to as a Virtual Trainer (VT), which combines an animated or recorded video instruction method, combined with a video analytic approach. A VT system analyzes the form of a subject exerciser in terms of pose and compares it to that of an instructed form, i.e., exercise, and points out discrepancies to the exerciser in a variety of ways. Examples include Nike+ Kinect® Training, Dance Central® 3, Adidas miCoach®, and NBA® Bailer Beats. All of these are available for the XBOX 360® and use a built-in Kinect® structured light depth measurement system to track the motions of an exerciser and thereby compare the exerciser's form to that of a pre-recorded instruction. However, because a VT system does not have a human trainer inspecting the exerciser's form, the ability to truly personalize the instruction to the exerciser is limited.
A good personal trainer is well aware of the exertion level of an exerciser, and adjusts the workout suitably to keep it at an optimum level. If the exerciser is allowed to perform at a lower exertion level than optimum, his/her progress in terms of fitness metrics will be significantly decreased. On the other hand, performing at a higher exertion level than optimum can be dangerous to the health and safety of the exerciser, and in extreme cases can be deadly. A major shortcoming of current VT systems is that they are unable to determine, and therefore to optimize, the exerciser's exertion level.
Even among normal people, optimum exertion levels can vary widely, and may be much lower than that of a professional athlete. Moreover, many exercisers participate in exercise programs as treatment for health conditions such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, etc., where optimum exertion levels may be significantly lower than that of ordinary people in normal health.
What is needed is a VT system which can provide an optimum exertion level of an exerciser at appropriate times, similar to the service of a good personal trainer.